Crossing Jostedalsbreen

Trying to load a google map of Mid Norway (Jostedalsbreen, just north of the Sognefjord)...wont work if just viewing the feed, pls see the blogger site

you can interact with the map - zoom in and pan, click on the pins, which show are campspots and the line shows the route taken (thats if I could figure how to make it work!!)

meeting the rest of the DnT group on friday night at by the bus stop in sogndal we jumped into a maxi taxi which took all 17 of us ot the start of our adventure - camping at the end of the road in Faberstølen, just beyond the Breheimsenter activities centre, on the northern edge of Jostedalsbreen (apparently mainland europes largest icesheet) - our mission - to traverse from north to south....70km later it was confirmed i had the wrong skis and far too much kit, now i really know why there are fjellski and randone skis!! but somehow i made it - with much help from cognac the siberian husky but not much from the weather, i did discover some fab trip food - no washing up!

Prekestolen

looking down on Pulpit rock and Lysefjord - some very tasty waffles, jam and cream as reward!

Gratulerer med dagen

National Day, parades, music, singing, suits and Bunads and this time stunning blue sky for champagne on the balcony

rocks galore

a few field days in berwick-upon-tweed looking at rocks, totally inspirational, reminds us why we do it, but why not more often....even managed to sqeeuze in my all time favourite beer - caledonian IPA
from top left clockwise - soils, coals, shales and limestones (parasequence top); tidal sands, muds and burrowing; zoophycus; faulting; bryozoa corals; marine shales, lower shoreface to incised valley (just think of the implications!); and very well preserved huge Carboniferous fossil tree

holy island

quite a season opener...

to start the season off with a quick 50km perhaps was a touch ambitious, but with good weather predicted off we set from Lundsvågen naturskole at 6pm – boats fully loaded (some more than others, i havent quite got the art of kajak packing sorted yet!) for a weekends paddling, 18k later and in need of dinner we pulled into a very suitable spot on the southern end of Fogn, cooked and went to bed!! The morning was bright and sunny and with the prospect of paddling half way round the islands of Ryfylke we breakfasted heartily on eggs and bacon and espresso from the tranja!!
saturdays morning paddling was great, quite still and flat with not so much wind, although paddling without the technology of wing paddles and carbonfibre boats as well as with enough food for a small family and technique like someone from the stone age going wasn’t quite in keeping with the “4paddle” rating the trip was given ;~) heading to the bridge at Ølesund (Randøy) we stopped for a nicely relaxed lunch – but the after lunch paddling was definitely “low 1 iron into the wind” stuff and certainly a lot more of an effort, after a much needed stop on the western end of Ombo we headed across to the Sjernarøyane which couldn’t have come sooner, although not the most inviting camping spot i’ve experienced – was still picking the ticks out 4 days later, last count was 11 – we watched the sun set with a cosy fire and our omni-present friend mr Mack!
sunday dawned as predicted with light rain but also with a wind that seriously challenged us, to the point where a “lift” was required – getting back on land in the face of large waves and a rocky coastline was rather exciting as was dashing the boats onto car ferry where they charged us for 2 cars!! So there’s still the return journey round the islands to do (although i’d didn’t realise that til after a long soak!!) – perhaps at a more leasurely pace…!